The Writer, The Cop & The Sultan's Sapphire
by Turretwithaview
Summary: A long journey in time ... and a multi-chapter story ... I hope you enjoy it!
1. Prologue

**The Writer, The Cop & The Sultan's Sapphire**

**_AN: The Prologue is based on the film 'The Wind & The Lion' starring Sean Connery and Candice Bergen. This film in itself blends historical facts and Hollywood fiction, so I have just taken this one step further … and yes, it is a Castle story, just bear with me a bit! Chapter 2 is being re-written a bit, will hopefully be up over the weekend! _**

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_**Prologue**_

Tangier, northern Morocco, October fifteenth, 1904. High on the hill overlooking the harbour, the estate was an oasis of calm, cooling sea breeze and mimosa scented air, a far cry from the busy, noisy and dusty streets of the city below where the bustling crowds noisily went about their business in this melting pot of humanity on the African shore of the Mediterranean.

William paused a moment, looked at his sister "_Did you just hear shots Jenny?_"

Jennifer Pedecaris stopped stroking the dog and looked at her brother doubtfully "_N.. no … what … are you sure ... ?_"

William shrugged, and returned to winding the string round the spinning top, a look of concentration on his young face although he occasionally looked down towards the town. Over by the edge of the terrace, under the shade of the blossoming mimosa trees and surrounded by the sounds of the cicadas singing in the mid-morning sun, Eden Pedecaris and her friend Sir Joshua Smith, were sitting at the table as Hamza the houseboy set down the tray with the two glasses of wine ... suddenly he stiffened, a look of shock crossed his face, and much to Eden's astonishment, he fell forward onto the table, sending the glasses crashing, the handle of a khanjar knife protruding from his back.

Sir Joshua was quick to stand up, pulling his gun from its holster and telling Eden to get down on the floor, he took careful aim at the group of horsemen who had suddenly appeared from round the back of the house and squeezed the trigger on his Webley & Scott, watching in satisfaction as one of the Berbers slowly tipped off his horse. He strode forwards gun still raised and continued firing into them seeing several topple off their mounts before they had realised the danger and swooped down the lawn towards him. He was still trying to reload when one of the Berbers galloped past him, slashing downwards with his sword and into Sir Joshua's back.

The horsemen then spread out, some riding their horses into the house, smashing and slashing and kicking over whatever they could find. Others raided the kitchen, taking food and slinging sacks of coffee, flour, legumes and whatever they could find over their saddles.

Still others had rounded up William, Jennifer and their mother. They were jostled towards the front of the house where a man wearing the dark ankle-length tunic, chalwar and the wrapped cloth turban of the Berbers sat calmly by the fountain.

One of the Berbers led a prancing black stallion up to the fountain and handed the reins to the sitting man. He stood and in one easy motion swung into the saddle. Suddenly the horse reared, skittered sideways and the rider was thrown.

Eden Pedecaris laughed at him, causing the other horsemen to look at her half in fear, half in anger. The man stood up, dusted himself down and got on another horse which one of his men had led up. Once settled, he rode over to Eden, leant down and slapped her across the face saying: "_I am Raisuli. Do not laugh at me again_".

The rest of the day was a blur in the mind of Eden as she and her children were forced to pack some clothes, mount horses and were led through the streets by the band of Berbers, eventually heading away from Tangiers and towards the east, the sun slowly setting behind them, their shadows growing longer as the afternoon progressed. The first night they stopped down on the sandy shore of the Mediterranean, Eden with her children held close to her whilst the men settled all around them. A fire was lit, some food cooked and handed round, the men quietly talking amongst themselves, ignoring their captives. The moon rose over the dunes to the south, casting a pale glow over the scene and creating dark shadows where it didn't reach.

The next morning, as she got up and headed for the water's edge to try and freshen up a bit, the men started teasing her, grabbing her clothes from her suitcase and clowning around. It came to a sudden stop as Raisuli approached from where he had been sitting somewhat apart, staring out to sea.

Eventually they were all mounted and headed southeast towards the distant Rif Mountains which lay purple from distance across the horizon. For the next few weeks they were kept as hostages by Raisuli in the Rif, far from any potential rescuers. Though her children seemed to admire Raisuli, Eden considered him a brigand and a lout.

Over the next two months, Eden's attitude towards Mulai Ahmed er Raisuli slowly changed despite herself. During that time they had escaped with the help of one of Raisuli's men, only to be betrayed and sold to a band of desert thieves. Their timely rescue by Raisuli who had tracked them and killed the kidnappers, delivering them from whatever fate had been in store for began this change in attitude.

After that, unwilling to risk further escape attempts, Raisuli kept them close, making them share his tent and revealing that he had no intentions to harm them; that it was no more than a political bluff. The added discovery that Eden played chess had led to many a pleasant evening recounting their lives and experiences as they moved pieces around the chequered board. Eden Pedecaris was no mean chess player, and the respect she earned from Raisuli also brought about a change in his attitude to her as he slowly revealed his plans for the future.

They had camped by the oasis that evening and Eden had enjoyed a wash in the privacy of his tent, an extra sheet hanging across the opening out of consideration towards her. She had managing at last to wash the sand out of her hair and to enjoy the sense of cleanliness; she would take her clothes to the water's edge tomorrow and wash them also. Suddenly she heard his approaching footfalls and could not help the feelings they elicited in her; the gentle thrumming of her body, the shortened breath, the flood of heat through her neck and face. She grabbed her nightdress and held it up before her in embarrassment as he swept aside the entrance sheet.

He paused as he straightened up, a packet under one arm and regarded her from his intense, dark eyes. She stood unmoving, staring at his eyes glowing from below his bushy eyebrows, the sharp beak of his nose, the short beard which lined his jaw and came to a goatee at the front. They each stood silent, unmoving for what seemed ages. Then he bowed towards her slightly and placed the package on the carpet in front of him. "_I though perhaps you would like a change of clothes ... something more appropriate for the location _..." as he swept his hands sideways "... _and perhaps more comfortable for you_", and with another perfunctory bow he had left, letting the entrance sheet fall back in place.

She wondered why she hadn't really felt uncomfortable with him standing there before her, only her nightdress held before her hiding her nakedness from him. With a sigh she let it drop to the floor and bent down to pick up the package.

There was a simple fleece fabric wrapped around the contents, and when she unfolded it she stopped with a gasp. She reached forward, picked up the red material and stood up, allowing it to unfold as she did so. It was the most gorgeous red silk kaftan with intricate gold embroidery around the neckline, down the front and around the edges of the sleeves. The swirling abstract patterns sparkled in the shadowy interior of the tent, giving the impression of swirling fire. Also in the package was a pair of white silk baggy pants, reminiscent of the chalwar he wore beneath his tunic. Another piece, similar to a camisole was obviously to be worn over the pants and below the kaftan.

Unhesitatingly, Eden slipped into the new clothes, a feeling of freedom, coolness and arousal invading her one after the other as she moved around the interior of the tent, putting away her old clothes and tidying up after her wash.

That night, as they sat together on the cushions on the floor, the chess board long discarded, the children sound asleep in their corner of the tent, he slipped his hand inside his tunic and removed a soft bag, similar to the money-bags to be found in the streets of Tangier. He seemed hesitant, a very unusual characteristic in him and she was intrigued.

"_Long ago, my family acquired a very special item. There is an ancient belief that it represents honesty, loyalty, purity of intentions and trust. It is also very ... spiritual ... it is believed to encourage enlightenment and peace in one's self as well as wisdom to know the right thing to do in times of trouble ... my mother also said it is a powerful amulet to keep evil at bay and to provide potent protection for the wearer_" he paused, twisting the bag in his fingers, his hooded eyes looking into the past, or maybe she thought, into the future.

Eventually his hands stilled, his eyes looked into hers and she felt as though he could see all the way into the darkest corners of her soul. She felt breathless. The hand holding the bag stretched out towards her and he indicated she should hold her hands out. As she did so, he carefully tipped the contents into her cupped hands.

She gasped and almost let it fall. It took her several minutes to take in what she was holding. Carefully she raised it between the fingers of her right hand and let the torchlight shimmer and glint off the faceted surfaces of the largest, bluest sapphire she had ever seen. It was about two inches long by an inch and a half wide and almost three quarters of an inch thick. The stone itself was set in a very simple silver mount with a slim but sturdy silver chain. This was not some modern piece of jewellery, the faceting was simple, the mounting and chain also, but the stone did not require anything more; it was, in itself, a totally extraordinary gem.

"_Wha... what is this_ .." she stuttered in amazement as she glanced from the stone to his face and back again.

"_I wish you to keep it, to remember me ... and perhaps my story ... when I am long gone and no one else will know or care .._."

She shook her head in denial, she knew not for what, whether it was the gift itself, the thought of leaving him, the thought that he would be gone, forgotten ... no, she couldn't take it ... any of it, as tears rolled down her cheeks and her hair fell across her face ... no, this was too much ...

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_**AN: And so we head into the future ... maybe further than you expect at this stage!**_


	2. Bones and Baubles

The building had seen better days, much better days in fact. The old hotel's frontage was covered in safety netting, the steps up to the entrance worn and dirt-encrusted. The interior was stripped down to structural columns and concrete pillars. In the large, open, central area, a cherry picker was presently stationed below a section of air conditioning duct running along the ceiling.

"_Well Doctor, what can you tell me?_"

The elder of the two men on the raised platform looked down at the fresh arrivals. "_Hi KeyCee, give me a minute and I'll be down ok?_"

The Detective he'd addressed acknowledged with a wave of the hand and turned to the men at her side. "_Rob, go interview the guys who found it, check the prelim report, make sure nothing clashes. Marko, see what the foreman can tell you_".

Both men nodded and moved off just as the platform settled with a hydraulic sigh on to its base. Doctor Joseph Deacon, Medical Examiner for the NYPD stepped off the platform and joined the Detective whilst his assistant raised the platform once more until it sat snugly against the air duct.

"_Ok, Pete's just going to unbolt the section from the ceiling and then we'll bring in down and get it to the lab. What I can tell you right now … and remember, KeyCee, this is mostly guesswork until proven otherwise, the skeletal remains look to be old, probably female and probably Caucasian_"

"_I can give you more once we get her to the lab and out of the air duct_"

"_Thanks Joe, let me know when you have something will you?_" She patted his arm as she moved away toward where Detective Rob Raylan was talking to the workers who had come across the remains. She listened in to the final part of the conversation before thanking the men and turning away with her partner and heading for the entrance where Marko 'Stan' Stankovic was waiting for them.

Detective Kaitlin Castle held her hand up slightly as Marko was about to talk and signalled for them to head outside to where their vehicles were parked. She turned once they reached the cars and propped herself against the hood of her unit and looked at Marko. "_What did the foreman say?_"

Marko looked down at his notes purely from habit. His companions knew he had near-photographic memory and could recite scene notes from months back with barely a pause. "_The company was brought in to demolish the old Soho Plaza Hotel last month in preparation for a new tower block going up on the site. They'd already cleared most of the interior and just had the ground floor air-conditioning and electrical installations to remove before the explosives team moves in to bring it down_" he finished his report by snapping his notepad closed.

KeyCee looked at Rob, eyebrow raised. He looked back at her for a second before colouring and looking down at his own notes. Rob was the youngest and least experienced of her team and it was no secret that he was totally awestruck by his boss. It was sometimes embarrassing in a sort of puppy-dog way, but he was good at his job and she could live with the jokes and banter that came her way. She just hoped he would grow out of it soon.

"_Harry Ferrano, been working for the company for two years. He was dismantling the air ducts along with three others when they came across the skeleton. They'd just removed the previous section, he turned round to start on the next one and saw something white in the duct, stuck his hand in to pull it out and when he realised it was a skull he dropped it. Luckily it landed inside the duct. After that they called the foreman, who then called it in_"

"_Ok, well lets head back, we'll just have to wait for the lab reports, any evidence on site will have been well and truly destroyed or messed up by now, so we won't gain anything from bringing in CSU. Once the lab can give us an approximate timeline we'll need to start checking records to see if anything pops. This is going to be a long one guys, so let's head back and get started_".

The new Tenth Precinct was a state of the art cop shop which once inside, somehow still managed to look like any one of the older stations still in use. KeyCee assumed it was just how cops wore down newness and moulded their environment to suit the job. Yes the place boasted all the latest gadgets, security systems and police technologies, but take those away and the smells, the sights and the sounds would be the same in any old precinct ... well, maybe not the smell she smiled.

She headed into the break room and pulled her mug from its hook. She paused with it in her hand and looked at the motif. The dark blue mug had the NYPD shield on it and at first glance appeared perfectly normal, like any other NYPD cup you could pick anywhere in the city, but closer examination showed that down either side of the shield, instead of the words '_City Of New York_', this cup carried '_Cup Of Detective Kaitlin Castle_'. She smiled, like she did every time she saw it, remembering her Dad's smug grin when he handed it to her the day she made Detective.

Pouring herself a coffee, she headed out to the bullpen and settled at her desk. Her desk backed onto the ends of her companions' desks, with Marko and Rob sat facing each other. She preferred the closeness; it allowed them to pass papers back and forth, converse comfortably about a case without having to yell at each other like some of the other teams did in the more dispersed working areas of the bullpen.

She'd only just logged on when Marko and Rob sat down at their desks, looking at her expectantly. "_Ok, as we haven't yet got a clue about the vic's T.O.D. there's no point in trying to run any checks on missing persons, but we can start on some background stuff. Marko, see what you can pull up in the way of floor plans and photographs, let's find out what the area where the vic was found was used as, what it looked like, who might have had access to it_". Marko nodded and began accessing city building plans.

"_Rob, meanwhile I want you to see what you can find about the hotel's owners and managers; Who were they, how long did they own or work at the Soho Plaza, are any of them still around?_"

"_On it boss!_" and he was soon clicking away, chasing city records and hoping his boss had forgotten his earlier dumbass attitude.


	3. Cold Case

It was five hours later before she got a call from the lab letting her know they had some preliminary results for her. Telling her boys where she was going, she got into the lift and headed down to the first level basement, home of the Crime Scene Labs. Once there she made her way down the central passage, waving occasionally to the lab technicians she recognised as she passed their glass-walled labs.

The mortuary was right at the end and as she entered she saw the ME and his assistant Pete over by one of the autopsy tables. She joined them and looked down at the yellowed bones laid out on the stainless steel surface.

"_So, what can you confirm for me Doc?_" she asked, leaning on the edge, careful not to touch anything.

_"Well KeyCee, as I already told you, the remains are old, we're still waiting for carbon dating, but an educated guess, taking into account the condition of the skeleton and the place she was found; I'd say you're looking at a twenty to thirty year-old murder"._

_"Murder?"_

He nodded in confirmation to her question, though he knew she was asking for his reasoning, not doubting the fact that a body found in an air conditioning system was most probably a murder victim.

_"See here?" _He asked pointing with a pair of tweezers at a hole in the sternum where the fourth and fifth ribs joined it. "_Looks like a small calibre G.S.W. as does this .." _he again drew her attention to a damaged area of the fourth rib on the left_. "I'd say a second round hit this rib, cracking it, and rebounding downwards into the lung_".

He then picked up an evidence jar and showed her the two pieces of metal it contained. "_Both items found amongst the remains of clothing and matter at the bottom of the duct, underneath the body. Too damaged to be able to ascertain type or G.S.W match, but the weight corresponds to .22 calibre_".

The ME picked up the skull and turned the facial plane towards her "_Cranial features; height of the cheekbones, shape of eye sockets, width of nasal structures, jaw robusticity point to Caucasian. We'll run the facial reconstruction software on her later, get an idea of what she may have looked like"._

He turned back to the skeleton and waved his hand at the pelvic bone. "_The pelvic inlet and sciatic notch indicate the victim is female, we still have to run test, but from dentition, cranial suture fusion and long bone length I would say she was in her late teens to early twenties, probably about 5,6 in height and slight in build, again, more detail and confirmation once we get all the prelims over and run her through the 3D scanner. We'll be able to virtually reconstruct her fairly accurately_".

"_You couldn't also tell me what music she liked and what her favourite tv shows were?_" she jokingly asked.

"_Give me time, KeyCee, give me time and I might!_"

"_Ok, so I'm looking for a young female vic, late teens to early twenties, around five six in height and slim build. What about clothes? Anything we can work with?_"

"_Not really, Gillian`s working on the few samples we were able to give her, whatever the rats left; at a guess jeans, trainers and some sort of dark top. But the material was faded and brittle. She may be able to give you something within twenty-four hours_" he shrugged, "_you'll have to talk to her about it_"

"_One more thing Detective, and I think it may give you somewhere to start_" the ME said with a smile, "_This was found clasped in the left hand_" holding out an evidence bag towards the Detective.

She stared, mouth open, at the contents of the bag, "_Is ... is that ... a sapphire?_" It looked to be the size of a walnut, it's beautiful colour and faceted surface catching the light as the bag swung lightly in the ME's hand, also reflecting off the silver mount and slim chain pooled at the bottom of the bag.

"_I wish it were KeyCee, but unfortunately it's an imposter, blue glass not a sapphire_".

"_Ok, Doc, thanks for the info."_ She said, signing for the evidence and taking the bag with the false gem, _"Let me know as soon as you've anything more for me will you?_"

"_Of course Detective, good luck with this one_"

She took the lift back up to the third floor, the Murder floor as it was jokingly referred to and sat down at her desk. She looked inquiringly at Marko who returned her look with one of frustration. "_We need to narrow the timeframe_" he said, "_the place seems to have changed the layout, function and design of the ground floor every few years!_"

"_Forget anything earlier than thirty-five years ago and later than fifteen; the Lab will narrow it down once they've run more tests_" She told him. "_What about you Rob? Any luck?_"

"_Well, assuming you're applying the same timeline?_" he waited to see her assent, "_The Marnett family owned it up till two thousand eight, they then sold to the Knightsbridge Group who owned it till mid two thousand fourteen. The building was then sold to a holding company called Lexington Investment Group who went into receivership in two thousand eighteen. Looks like litigation then kept the place empty and unused until last year when a Russian company called .._." he checked his notes, ".._. Kantech, bought the building with the intention of knocking it down and building their office tower for their US and Canadian ventures_". He looked up from his notes, "_I still need to find out who the managers were whilst the place was still running_"

KeyCee nodded in approval and turned back to her own computer. She pulled the bogus gem in its evidence bag from her pocket and placed it next to the virtual keyboard. She typed in a search for any cases involving theft or trading of large sapphires and almost immediately got a hit.

With raised eyebrows she pulled the file up and opened the case officer's cover report. She read the name on the file and with a groan dropped her head on the desk. The thump drew the attention of both of her team members as they looked at her in concern.

"_Kaitlin, you ok?_" She was rarely called by her name, nearly everyone in the precinct called her by her initials KC, and the fact that Marko had used her given name showed his concern. She raised her head and looked at him. With a wry smile she answered "_Yeah Marko, I'm ok, I ... I think we have a lead; a case file from two thousand fourteen ... one of my mother's case files!_"

Marko let out a chuckle, he didn't get to meet Kaitlin's parents that often, but he really enjoyed it when he did. Looking across at Rob he could see the puzzlement on his face. "_Kaitlin's mom was top dog in Homicide _..." Rob nodded, everyone knew about ex Chief of Detectives Katherine Beckett, "..._ any time Kaitlin consults a case with her, the old habits kick in and our boss has to get a restraining order!_"

KeyCee laughed "_It's not as bad as that Marko! Let's just say that between my Dad and my Mom, it can get a bit ... overwhelming_"

"_We going to call in on them?_" Marko asked hopefully

"_Uh-huh, I am going to, you are going to carry on digging up anything you can find on the place round two thousand fourteen. Rob, same for you, narrow the search to one year either side; thirteen to fifteen, see what you come up with. Marko, start with my Mom's case file_ ..." she wrote the number down and handed it to him, _"... see what might match up with our vic's case_"

With that she turned her computer off, locked the false gem away in the desk safe and pulled on her jacket. As she got ready to leave she turned to her team "_When you're done, wrap for the day, we'll start early tomorrow morning_".

Once she'd disappeared into the lift, Detective Rob Raylan turned to his partner and asked "_What was all that about, her Mom can't be that bad!_"

"_Bad?! No of course not, you watched any of those old Nikki Heat movies?_"

The youngster nodded.

"_Well, let's just say that if some of the stories are to be believed, reality was not far off fiction. Problem is, the boss got to where she is on merit; the fact that she feels she has to live up to the reputation of a legend ... it makes her a bit cranky sometimes! _"

"_What are they like, her parents?_"

"_They're great, you'll probably meet then on this case the way things are going, but let me tell you ... the parties ... especially Halloween ... spectacular!_"

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_**AN: Seems I have hit the limit with documents I can post ... oops ... will have to maybe try putting some of the sorted stories together into one single doc in order to be able to add more chapters to this story.** _


	4. Family

Spotting a van pulling out from a space outside her parent's building, Kaitlin pulled into the spot; it saved her having to go down into the underground car park. She climbed out of her car and headed into the building, pushing open the glass door and heading towards the reception desk from where two men regarded her with big smiles on their faces.

"_Evening Miss Kaitlin, and how are we today?_"

"_Evening Bob,_" she answered leaning over the counter and giving old Bob Herrera a hug, "_I'm fine thanks, how's Maria?_"

"_Oh she's doing great thanks, looking after the grandkids ... shall I let them know you're on your way up?_"

"_No need to Bob, thanks. Give Maria a big hug from me!_"

"_Will do_"

She then turned to the younger man "_How are the twins doing Mario?_"

"_Getting spoilt rotten by their grandmother, Detective_" he grinned back at her.

Entering the lift she pressed the button for the 30th floor and moved to the back wall as the doors slid closed behind her. All three walls were of opaque 'Smartglass', but when she pressed her hand against the back wall it gradually became translucent, allowing her a fantastic view towards Midtown, with Central Park in the distance as the lift rose towards the top of the building.

As soon as it slowed down she moved to the doors, waited for them to slide open and stepped out into the elegant marble hall. A few minutes later she was standing at her parent's front door, looking up at the security camera and waiting for the door's electronic lock to click open. She had a key for emergencies but didn't like to use it otherwise.

Kaitlin had no sooner shut the door behind her than a red-topped missile came hurtling her way and wrapped itself round her legs, almost knocking her off her feet.

"_Auntie Key, Auntie Key!_"

Laughing she leant down, wrapped her arms around her four year-old nephew and picked him up. "_Hello Sam! What are you doing here?_"

Looking up she saw her big sister standing in the doorway to the sitting room, a resigned smile on her face as she shook her head.

"_Hi Lex_," she said, giving her a kiss and a hug with her free arm as she juggled Sam onto her hip, "_When did you get in?_"

"_Mummy, Mummy_ ..." started Sam, holding sticky fingers out towards his mother.

"_Shhh Sam, you know you shouldn't interrupt when people are talking ... and let's wipe those fingers before you goo up Aunt Kaitlin's hair!_" taking a tissue from her sleeve and wiping her son's hand, "_We arrived this morning, Phillip's just gone to check in with one of his clients, I was going to call you later on to see if you'd join us for dinner .._" she laughed, "_... looks like you read my mind!_"

Sam wriggled and Kaitlin let him down onto the floor before he ran off making aeroplane sounds, arms outstretched, weaving around the furniture. The two women entered the sitting room, Kaitlin's arm tucked through Alexis' as they followed the child.

"_Look who the cat dragged in!_" said Alexis as she caught sight of a partially visible head behind the kitchen counter. The person in question looked up and a dazzling smile lit her face as she stood up.

"_Kaitlin! How are you honey?_", then as the time of day registered "_Are you ok? Has anything happened?_" the tone slightly concerned as she moved round the kitchen counter to hug her daughter

"_I'm fine Mom, nothing's wrong, just a possible connection to an old case of yours, thought I'd come over and pick your brains, but dinner sounds better_" she laughed "_By the way, where's Dad?_".

Kate rolled her eyes "_Supposed to be setting up the train set with Sam, I expect he's got carried away and probably isn't aware that his little helper is no longer there!_"

Kaitlin shrugged out of her jacket and hung it on the back of a chair, before running her hands through her hair and saying "_I'll just go say hi to hi..._"

"_Say hi to whom?_" broke in a voice behind her. She turned to see her father standing in the doorway and she immediately went to him. Father and daughter hugged and then arms around each other, moved to the kitchen counter where Kate and Alexis were looking on in tender amusement.

"_Is it my birthday today or something?_" asked a smiling Richard Castle as he surveyed three out of the four principal women in his life.

Kate huffed a laugh and tapped him on the chest "_You'll be lucky, now go play with your grandson and leave us women to get on with dinner!_"

Reaching the door he turned back to look at the kitchen and stopped in appreciation. All three had moved behind the counter and were unaware of his observation. In the centre stood Kate, her hair cut short like all those years ago when they had first met; though it was now blonde and not auburn ... "_It hides the grey better_" ... she had laughingly told him sometime last year. She was wearing a simple and elegant beige wool dress, a thin gold chain round her waist making the dress hug her still slim figure.

At sixty-two, Kate could still have been working, but a couple of years ago she had agreed to early retirement realising that she needed to spend as much time as possible with him. The fright he had had on his seventieth birthday had not only warned him that he needed to change his eating habits but had also given Kate pause for thought. Though she did not realise he was aware of her reasoning, he knew that she had recognised that their days together would not be eternal, and so she had handed in her badge and embarked on a home life with two or three trips each year to those places they had never got around to visiting and playing grandmother to the three grandchildren.

Standing to her right, chopping knife in hand and laughing at something that Kaitlin had just said was Alexis. At forty seven she was still striking, her tall, slim figure, pale skin and red hair not much different to when she had still lived at home, the Rodgers' genes were obviously serving her well. Even after three kids, she could still turn heads; though admittedly the third one had been a bit of a surprise arriving as he had some twelve years after his siblings.

To Kate's left, their daughter was a strikingly similar version to a twenty-six year-old Kate. She was all '_Kate Beckett plus_' as he jokingly told their friends. Kaitlin was a little taller, a little bigger boned, a little more attractive and a little more self-assured than her mother at that age, and only her blue eyes were a non-Beckett feature. Those and her ability to come up with off-the-wall theories which even Castle had to admit, gave him a run for his money ... though he did think she played him more than she let on.

Just then, as if aware of his scrutiny, all three looked up. With a hastily blown kiss in their direction he headed off in search of the youngest of his grandchildren. Alexis laughed and looked at the other two, "_Still up to his creepy staring?_"

Both Kate and Kaitlin nodded in unison, each doing a 'Beckett eye roll' which made Alexis laugh even more. Her younger sister threw Alexis a grin and peeling some garlic cloves asked her about her other nephew and niece.

Alexis groaned with only half-simulated exasperation, "_Chris is sailing some playboy's yacht from ... Marbella, in Spain if I remember correctly, to one of the Greek islands ... don't ask me which, it was going to be Serifos, then the destination was changed to Ermoupoli, god knows if it's been changed again. He says it's all training for the next world cup, but I wish he'd get this sailing thing out of his system and settle down to his studies. As to Helen,_" here her voice changed to one of quiet pride "_she's doing well, one year left for her degree and she's already being headhunted!_"

"_Takes after her Mom then!_" said Kate with a humorous glint in her eye

Alexis poked her tongue out at Kate "_I just wish I knew who Chris takes after ... I could have sworn Phillip was his father!_" At the look on Kate's face she burst out laughing, "_I'm joking Mum! Of course he's Phillip's! I just don't know where he got the sailing bug from!_"

Just then the door buzzer sounded and Alexis said "_That's probably Phillip, I'll go get it_"

A few minutes later and Phillip Deveroux was standing between his mother-in-law and sister-in-law, an arm round their shoulders as he bent forward to smell the simmering pan "_Hmm ... that smells good!_"

"_Daddy, Daddy!_" and little Sam was rushing into his father's arms. Phillip picked his young son up and swung him around as the three women looked on with indulgent smiles on their faces.


	5. Old Files

Dinner was a rowdy affair with Rick and Phillip trying to outdo each other with tall stories and the three women rolling their eyes and trying to keep the conversation suitable for young ears. Sam Deveroux chortled his way through the meal, not understanding much of the conversation but loving the way Grams and Auntie Kay and Mom were rolling their eyes and making disgusted looking faces whilst Gramps and Daddy laughed.

Soon after dinner Alexis put Sam to bed and she and Phillip left for a friend's night club they had been invited to. With the table cleared the three moved to the sitting room with glasses of wine and the mood for serious discussion.

Kaitlin Castle looked at her parents sitting across the coffee table from her. Taking a deep breath she asked "_Do you remember a case back in early two thousand fourteen involving a sapphire and the Soho Plaza Hotel?_"

Kate and Rick looked at each other, their brows furrowing in thought before nodding and turning back to Kaitlin. It was her mother who spoke first.

"_Yes, it was some sort of exhibit that was being set up ... there was an explosion_ ..."

"_A small one ._.." butted in her father "..._ it set off a small fire in the store room at the back _..."

"... _when the smoke cleared they found the sapphire was missing_ ..." came from Kate

"... _and the woman _..." he snapped his fingers trying to remember her name

"... _she was lying dead inside the tent_ ..." finished off Kate with a nod.

Kaitlin looked at her parents in amusement "_I know Auntie Lanie says you two are cute when you do that, but I wish you'd at least complete one sentence each!_". Two sheepish faces looked back at her. "_Ok, Dad, do you have any story notes on the case that might help us along with Mom's case notes?_"

Rick nodded, and stood up to head into his study. Kate went to refill their glasses and when she had settled back down, looked at her daughter and asked "_Something come up that you think is related?_"

Kaitlin grunted, took a sip and then "_They're demolishing the hotel. Some workers came across a skeleton inside the aircon ducts in what may have been the exhibits hall at the time. Our ME found a blue cut glass pendant in its hand ... I'm assuming some sort of relationship between the two cases._"

Her father had returned in time to hear the second half of Kaitlin's comment and flopped down on the couch with a sigh and a glint in his blue eyes.

"_Oh boy! Now that is cool!_" Both women looked at him and he held up his hands in surrender but insisted "_Well, it is!_"

He laid two file folders on the table, pushing one in front of Kate and opening the other himself. Kaitlin knew how this system of theirs worked. The one held Kate's own back-up copy of her case files the other was Ricks own 'case file' with all his random observations and crazy theories and possible story line if he were to use it in a book ...

Together they formed a surprisingly clear picture of the relevant case and Kaitlin had found them of great help when studying for her Detective's badge. The combined and often opposing views of the same case had allowed her to develop her own successful method which was why she was presently following in her mother's footsteps as one of the youngest and most successful murder investigators in the City.

As she flipped the file open, Kate started absentmindedly patting the couch around and behind her as if in search of something. With a sigh, Castle pulled a pair of specs out of his shirt pocket and handed them to Kate. She gave him a sweet smile, slipped them on and settled them on the tip of her nose as she lifted the first of the sheets out of the folder.

Kaitlin waited patiently for her parents to go through their notes before passing them on to her a sheet at a time. She knew it was no good just asking them to hand them over, they just couldn't ... especially with the news of the discovery of the skeleton ... no, they would need to re-evaluate the case in the light of the fresh information.

With a sigh she settled back against the chair, enjoying her wine and waited for the two piles of documents to stack up. As usual it was her Dad who in spite of the larger pile of paper finished reading first, his speed-reading not as fast as before but still respectable.

As her mother finished the last of the notes and pushed the file over, Kaitlin slotted the sheets back into their respective covers and stacked them on the edge of the table. She could see her father watching her in amusement and her mother in frustration. In this she was much more like her father than her mother. She was quite willing to leave the reading of the notes till tomorrow, aware that otherwise she would most likely spend the night trying to solve the case from these notes and be a useless automaton the following day. She would much rather get a good night's sleep in and start fresh in the morning than do one of her mother's all-nighters.

"_So, any insights now that you've read the case notes?_" she asked cheekily

"_The assistant, Raymond Azoulay, he was hiding something, I'm sure of it, but witnesses placed him near the fire and trying to get one of the extinguishers to work at the time that Marianne Lee was killed. He couldn't have done it and we couldn't find anything incriminating ... maybe another talk with him might throw some light on the matter after all this time, if he can be found .._" said Kate.

Rick pointed to his file and added "_When I did the story outline for inclusion in a Nikki Heat book, I always thought there had to be a mysterious accomplice ... maybe the skeleton in the duct is him_ .."

"_Her_ ... " interrupted Kaitlin "..._young female, late teens to early twenties, around five six in height and slim build is what we have so far. By the way, any idea what the weather was like at the time? Only shreds of clothing left ... chewed by rats or decomposed ... _"

Rick took his wife's hand in his and thought back. Not that he could remember the weather specifically but what with the story outline for the possible inclusion of the case in a Nikki Heat book, any unusual weather such as rain, snow, or heat wave would have had him adding some detail of Nikki's clothing ... the fact that there was no such mention ... "_Nope, nothing unusual comes to mind, you'll just have to look it up in the records ...although I do remember the scene when we got there ..._" Kate looked at him, eyebrows raised, "... _well I do ... it was that haughty manager who looked at us as if we were going to pee on his carpet!_"

She thought back and then started laughing "_You mean the one who was standing on the steps trying to get the fire-fighters to wipe their boots _..."


	6. Preparations

Marianne Lee glanced around the hall and nodded in self-satisfied acceptance. Not that she did not have reason to be proud of her work, the pale coffee-coloured walls set off the photographs of the Sahara desert to perfection, their tones of pinks and mauves and gold and oranges enhanced by the neutrality of the backdrop whilst the central display of artefacts, weapons, costumes and jewellery were highlighted by the spotlights that shone from the ceiling.

She smiled quietly to herself as her knuckles brushed the dark red silk of the kaftan, her fingers unable to resist tracing the gold silk thread that bordered the gown's edges. It had only required minor repairs even after more than a century, testament to the care it had received when used.

She turned towards the central plinth and lost her smile slightly as she saw the approaching figure of her assistant, Raymond Azoulay. He was efficient, polite and had good taste, but something about his cold blue eyes and the rather thin lips made her uncomfortable; had it not been for the disappearance of her previous assistant Emily Peterson and the fact that Azoulay's knowledge of the Sahara and more importantly the Bedouin people was impressive, she might have refused his application ... but she had been desperate with the exhibit only a week away from opening and Emily no-where to be found.

Her attention was drawn to the item on display on the plinth. Set behind high security glass, resting on weight sensors and surrounded by movement ones as well as a dedicated security camera, lay the star of the show. Only slightly smaller than the _Logan Sapphire_, this one on had been nicknamed the _Sultan's Sapphire_ by the press, though in actual fact the original 'recorded' owner had been Mulay Ahmed Muhamed Raisuli the Magnificent, sherif of the Riffian Berbers … not a Sultan in sight.

As Raymond Azoulay approached his boss, his eyes were also drawn to the necklace on display within the case. His eyes gave nothing away though the slight tightening of his mouth might have been a tell …. or might have just be a show of appreciation. The pendant was displayed on a black silk necklace bust, top-lit by three spotlights which brought out the full sparkle of the deep blue stone and showed the simple silver chain to best advantage. He looked sideways at the Asian features of his boss presently admiring the jewel and seemed to hesitate a moment before abruptly holding out his clipboard with the documents for her signature.

With a gentle sigh Marianne turned from the sapphire and took the clipboard. She had been aware of his scrutiny and had hoped he would just go away, but she also had a responsibility to get the final touches ready for the opening in two days' time. They would do a trial run of the 'launch' later tonight and hopefully on Saturday night it would go without a hitch. If the press were happy with it and the reviews generous, it might open doors to her, the doors of the Vegas Casinos where the real money could be made. One of New York's five star hotels was a good setting to start off the American Tour of the Sultan's Sapphire, but the casinos offered a much bigger 'captive' audience, and their advertising campaigns put her present one to shame.

She checked the dockets for the catering, signed the agreement for the extra hotel staff that would see to her client's needs and finished with a flourishing signature for the Jil Jilala music band which would be playing traditional Moroccan musical during the evening.

As she signed the last chit she handed the clipboard and pen back to her assistant who with a nod turned away and headed towards the back doorway of the conference hall they had been ceded by the hotel. She watched him leave and shook her head, unsure of why he made her nervous. Pulling a cloth from her pocket she wiped the display case where her fingers had accidentally left a slight smudge before turning to go to visit Maurice, the hotel manager and make arrangements for the increased security.

She nodded to the guard at the entrance to the hall as she left, noting the name tag on his shirt, she was good at those minor things, remembering people's names, and she would call him Mike next time she saw him.

Mike Thomson watched the woman leave, a discreetly admiring look on his face. He knew she was called Marianne Lee, was in her mid-thirties and had a stunning Eurasian face. Her body wasn't bad either, though she was a bit small for his taste in that department. He checked his watch, stood up and locked the doors to the hall whilst he did his rounds. It didn't take much, the hall wasn't that big, but some of the displays blocked his view from his desk at the entrance and he would not be doing his job if he didn't make a regular check of the sides and back of the hall; especially now that the frigging blue stone was in place!

As he circled behind the raised platform where the musicians would be playing, he heard the door to the back open. Turning he saw the assistant enter the room, seemingly checking his watch as he did so. He looked at Mike, gave him a cool nod and went round to fiddle with the display of cooking utensils and musical instruments laid out on a carpet in front of the Berber tent, or khaima as he had been told it was called. Mike shrugged and thought "_Up yours too, you prick!_" as he turned to continue his routine check.

He completed his round, headed to the back of the hall and went in to the room at the back. It served as a storeroom, come changing room, come any other use you can think of room. The back wall was lined with lockers and had a dressing table and mirror at one end. The musicians would be making use of those facilities later on. In the centre was a large table which held stacks of programs, folders, flyers and a pile of the book Marianne Lee was hoping to launch on the wake of the Sultan's Sapphire Tour.

Mike picked one up. The cover showed windblown dunes and above them the faces of an arab … he assumed it was old whatshisname form out in the hall and an attractive blonde, blue-eyed woman, her hair blowing against the man's shoulder. Across the bottom was the title _A Desert Song_ … duh! Probably some romantic girly book, he dropped it on the top of the pile and continued his check. A number of boxes and packing crates were lined up against the wall to the left and he assumed they had contained the material on display in the hall. Against the opposite wall were several stacks of chairs and a large metal bin which was already half full of waste; torn papers, some food cartons, empty paper cups; no hidden thieves he grinned.

He almost bumped into the assistant as he exited the room. The guy was trying to get the fire extinguisher back up onto the wall bracket next to the door. Mike was puzzled but gave him a helping hand. "_Just wanted to check the thing was full_ …." was the guy's comment. Mike shrugged and headed back to his desk, keeping his thoughts to himself as he unlocked the doors and settled back down on his chair. Either the guy was an idiot or paranoid, either way, he was quite happy to ignore him.


	7. Heist

It was almost eight when Marianne Lee re-entered the room. She had been up to change and was wearing a stunning, off the shoulder black dress which set her slight figure off to perfection … if the look on Thomson's face was anything to go by.

"_Have the musicians arrived yet Mike?_" she asked.

For a moment he was startled by the use of his name, then he recovered and nodded, "_Yes ma'am, they're in the back room getting ready_"

She thanked him and headed straight for the central plinth to check on the sapphire. It glittered back at her and she had the absurd idea that it was laughing at her nerves, at the butterflies in her stomach, at the fact that she had been sick in the toilet not fifteen minutes ago … and this was only a test run for the big night … my god! What would she be like on Saturday!

She saw Salim, the band's rep come out of the back room and waved to him. He smiled back at her and approached her, opening his arms to indicate the surrounding displays he told her in his heavily accented but fluent English, "_Very impressive Miss Lee, you have quite a collection of interesting items here,_" then pausing to look at the sapphire, "_but of course, this item puts the others in the shade!_"

She thanked him politely and then turned the conversation to the musical arrangements. They had already discussed the type of music and she just wanted to go over Saturday evening with him. "_So, you'll be playing quietly in the background whilst all the guests arrive and whilst they move around the exhibition. We'll then bring out the food and the band can take centre stage, giving the guests a good selection and getting them into a fun mood. At around nine I'll give you the signal and then the music can be toned down again whilst I read some of the extracts from the diary. I should be finished by around nine-thirty and then the band can pick up again until the guests leave_".

He nodded, "_Tonight they will run through the repertoire for each of the 'stages' you can then see how the acoustics are and what changes you want to make?_"

She nodded in agreement, "_It will just be some friends and a few contacts, local TV and radio who will be coming, they'll be able to get a better impression of the display without all the guests milling about. If you need anything just let Raymond know, ok?_"

A few moments later two more security guards joined Mike Thomson at the desk and after talking to him for a few minutes moved around the room in opposite directions. They were obviously getting a good look at things and checking out the hall. Both checked into the back room as they reached it and then continued round until re-joining Mike at the front desk. After another brief chat, one of them moved to the side of the main doors and the other moved to the centre of the room, keeping the display case with the sapphire within eyeballing range.

Next to arrive were the half-dozen hotel staff that would be on earning some extra cash serving drinks and canapés. Two food trollies and a drinks one were pushed in and they set about placing the food and drinks on the table near the back wall.

Slowly guests began arriving, each signing in at the desk, Mike checking their names off against his list. He was able to tell which of them were colleagues and friends and which strangers from Ms Lee's welcome. The first of the local TV stations arrived, a team of three, and began setting up. By nine o'clock the hall was pretty crowded, the _Jil Jilala_ band was playing some upbeat music and the waiters and waitresses were handing out canapés and drinks. It was not the Moroccan food that would be served by the caterers on Saturday, but was enough to keep people happy.

Marianne Lee was beginning to find her throat getting dry from the several interviews and the constant chatting. In spite of that she was buzzing, the feedback was good, both friends and strangers commenting on the contents of the display and specifically on the magnificence of the Sultan's Sapphire.

She was about to ask a diminutive waitress moving nearby for a glass of water when the waitress turned to her and giving her a hesitant smile quietly said, "_Miss Lee, I think I should tell you something about your assistant … Emily Peterson … ?_"

The comment pulled Marianne up short her eyebrows lifting. She leant towards the waitress who was several inches shorter than her own five-eight, the music from the band and the conversations going on around them making it difficult to hear the softly spoken waitress. Marianne took hold of the girl's arm and led her away from the area towards a quieter corner. The waitress passed her tray to one of her colleagues who accepted it and allowed herself to be led away.

They had just reached the area in front of the tent when a muted explosion sounded from the back of the hall. Conversations petered out as everyone turned to look towards the back of the hall whilst one of the security guards moved quickly to the door leading to the service room at the back. He pushed the door open only to see flaring flames before thick oily smoke began pouring out of the room into the hall.

Worry began to run icy fingers through the gathered crowd and whilst some guests began laying down glasses and plates and heading towards the doors out onto the foyer others tried crowding closer to get a look at what was going on. The guard had grabbed the fire-extinguisher from off the wall by the door and was trying to get it going, but was having some difficulty with it. He was joined by Raymond Azoulay who seemed to be trying to get the extinguisher off the guard whilst telling him to close the door as the acrid smoke wafted it way out into the hall.

Panic was now taking hold as the smoke reached the crowded guests, Mike and his fellow front-door guard reaching the back of the room to try and help their colleague. The TV crews were also pushing forwards trying to get a news scoop, however minor, whilst those nearest the billowing black cloud were beginning to choke and were desperately trying to push back away from it.

As fire alarms began ringing, people pushed and a number of smaller display items got knocked over adding to the chaos. No-one noticed the waitress push Marianne Lee into the tent, making her loose her balance and pulling the tent partially down on herself as her body knocked one of the poles down. A startled Marianne had hardly gathered her wits when she felt the diminutive but surprisingly strong waitress land on top of her and next instant felt two sharp blows below her ribcage. As the waitress climbed off her she stared in mute astonishment at the handle of the khanjar knife protruding from her chest, her last thought as she felt the chain holding the key to the sapphire's display case ripped from her neck was that it had not kept evil at bay nor had it provided potent protection … but then of course she hadn't been wearing it either….

Jihane Mahfouz, though her work permit and social security indicated her name was Lucia Hernandez, wiped her hands on the edge of the tent to remove the blood and checked to see if anyone had noticed anything. The thick smoke was filling the hall from ceiling to just mid-height, thin tendrils swirling downwards as air currents caught and chased it. She could make out the legs of the guests as they crowded towards the doors coughing and chocking in the leaden air. She was unobserved off to one side, crouched by the semi-collapsed tent. Pulling a small bottle of water from her apron pocket she doused a handkerchief with water and held it across her mouth and nose. Quickly she moved to the wall beside the security guard's desk, ran her hand up the wall and located the light switches.

With a flick she turned them off, plunging the already darkened room into ghostly gloom. Again, keeping down close to the floor she skirted the now thoroughly panicking guests and made her way circuitously to the sapphire's display case. It took her two tries to slip the special key into the lock at the back, turning off all the security measures bar the CCTV camera watching the sapphire from above. She slid open the casing put her hand through whilst keeping her head bowed at all times. A quick grab and the sapphire was in her hand. She didn't bother sliding the back closed, she simply dropped the display bust on the floor, slipped the pendant down the front of her uniform and joined the thinning numbers of coughing people making their way out of the doors.

As soon as she reached the foyer she pushed her way to one side, keeping against the walls and making her way towards the staff door that would lead her to the stairwell and lifts used by the hotel chamber maids and room service. Sirens could be heard approaching as the key, previously supplied by Aziz, gave her entry and soon she was on the landing just below the first floor, wiping her face with the still damp cloth and trying to catch her breath. She sat down on the narrow plinth running round the stairwell, her back to a grill in the wall.

What she had just accomplished would give her standing amongst the brotherhood, but most importantly would prove to Aziz that she was willing to do anything for the cause. Looking round to make sure she was unobserved, she pulled the sapphire from its nesting place and held it in her hand, admiring the beauty of the stone. Suddenly she looked up and let out a gasp as she noticed Aziz standing not four feet away, observing her quietly, expressionlessly, neither face nor eyes giving anything away.

She leant forwards holding out her hand with the pendant towards him, a satisfied smile on her face. The smile changed to puzzlement first and then terror as she saw that what he was pointing at her. The first one felt like a red hot poker jabbing into the centre of her chest, knocking her back a little, turning her as the second one struck just below her breast, numbing her chest almost as much as her mind had already been numbed by his actions ….

She was unaware if it was minutes or seconds between collapsing on the floor and feeling herself being picked up … her eyes were misted over, her extremities felt numb, her breathing was laboured, painful … she couldn't work out what was happening … all she could feel was her cheek scraping along cold metal, a sense of claustrophobia … he was behind her … she needed to get away from him … desperately her fingers clawed at the surface below her, her feet tried finding purchase … she had no strength … desperation had her crawling forwards, inch by painful inch …. she was unaware of her surroundings, of the tears running down her cheeks …. her remaining vitality fading with each straining breath ….. darkness.

The stairwell was empty, the grill back in place … silence muting the distant sounds of shouting, heavy boots and sirens.


	8. On The Scene

The Soho Plaza Hotel on West Broadway did not approve of NYPD cars parked outside its doors, flashing lights drawing attention not only to the hotel, but more importantly to its patrons who most definitely were not paying top dollar for that kind of entertainment. Add fire trucks and ambulances to the mix and the potential for negative news multiplied exponentially.

Which was why Maurice Carvahlo, Manager of the Soho Plaza was desperately trying to minimize the effect of the disaster. Unfortunately, at five-foot six Maurice did not pose much of an obstacle for the burly firemen who were traipsing in and out of the hotel foyer totally ignoring the little man who was almost jumping up and down in frustration.

Kate flashed her badge at the uniform on the line and he nodded to them, pulling the tape up as the Detective and Castle ducked underneath. They were halfway up the entrance steps when Castle grabbed her arm and pulled her to a stop just as a couple of firemen came out rolling up one of the hoses.

As they entered the hotel a scene of chaos met them. Only a few people were left sitting or lying about, paramedics and firemen in attendance offering oxygen, band aids and even defibrillation depending on individual needs. Most had already been dispatched to local hospitals or sent home. Puddles of water decorated the foyer floor and hotel staff were busy with mops, the diminutive man in the smart suit and carnation in button hole darting from one group the next, threatening, begging, cajoling as things slowly began to revert to normal … at least in the foyer.

Just then Detective Esposito appeared in the a doorway to the left of reception. Seeing him, both Beckett and Castle moved to meet him, ignoring the baleful look the manager.

"_What happened here?_" asked Detective Kate Beckett

"_Hen party gone wild?_" added an irrepressible Castle

Both detectives looked at him and he shrugged in apology, though neither missed the twinkle in his eyes.

"_Arson, murder and theft by the looks of it_" said Esposito leading them over to the half collapsed tent by the left-hand wall.

* * *

_**... to be continued**_


End file.
